The NBA Playoffs are set to get underway Tuesday with the first ever play-in tournament. And while fans anxiously await to see who comes out of those matchups with a cemented in playoff spot, we already have four matchups etched into stone.
The Knicks will host the Hawks and the Bucks will welcome in the Heat in the Eastern Conference. In the Western Conference, Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets tee off against the Blazers while the Clippers hope to take down Luka Doncic and the Mavericks to start the NBA playoffs.
Here are the odds for each series, via DraftKings.
Dallas Mavericks (+270)
Los Angeles Clippers (-360)
Portland Trail Blazers (-105)
Denver Nuggets (-120)
Atlanta Hawks (-112)
New York Knicks (-112)
Miami Heat (+270)
Milwaukee Bucks (-360)
If the play is value it lies within the Heat – Bucks series and the Mavericks – Clippers series. While Dallas and Los Angeles is a featured matchup of a No. 4 vs. a No. 5 seed, the Clippers are early heavy favorites to advance in the NBA playoffs. The Mavericks pieced together a solid regular season, but the Clippers are getting healthy at the right time and are the favorite for many to come out of the Western Conference altogether.
Miami took out the Bucks last year in the NBA playoffs but this year's team lacks the zest that we saw last season from Miami. While there's no better time than the postseason to dial back up some of that energy, the Bucks have been playing on a different tier all season compared to the Heat.
The Knicks – Hawks series is a coin flip, with New York being the host as the No. 4 seed for the first couple of games. The Blazers knocked off the Nuggets in their regular season finale and they are a near coin toss matchup, according to the books, against the Nuggets in the NBA playoffs.
With the NBA playoffs set to get underway, it's time to lock in some of those picks!
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